Manchester United handed boost in chase of Nicolas Otamendi

Premier League giants Manchester United have been encouraged to ramp up their pursuit of Valencia defender Nicolas Otamendi

It was not all pretty but Manchester United did manage to achieve their ambition of finishing in the top four this season under the tutelage of Louis van Gaal.

While facilitating a return back to the Champions League has to be considered a significant achievement by van Gaal, there is no denying the fact that the Dutchman needs to make a couple of major changes to his squad in order to turn United into Premier League contenders once again.

Therefore, one can expect another very busy period in the transfer window for United this summer and signing a new central defender seems to be high on the agenda for van Gaal.

It was widely reported that Borussia Dortmund star Mats Hummels was van Gaal’s number one target but the German side are in no mood of letting their star defender leave anytime soon.

As a result, van Gaal has been forced to focus on targets elsewhere and Valencia star Nicolas Otamendi had emerged as another realistic target for the Red Devils.

Now to hand a huge boost in United’s pursuit of Otamendi, the defender’s agent, Eugenio Lopez, has gone on to reveal that his client is keen on leaving Valencia and stated that the 27-year old is attracted by the prospect of joining a bigger club.

Salvo said, “There was an offer to leave in January. He was tempted but we agreed with VCF to stay. Nicolas told Salvo two months ago, to his face, that he wanted to leave Valencia in the summer. It surprises me a lot that Rufete (DoF at Valencia) said Nico told him he didn’t want to leave. It isn’t the truth.

“Nicolas is happy at VCF and with the fans but he’s got an option to improve on a professional level. Jorge Mendes knows this too. Nico is going to do everything (possible) to leave. There are a lot of conversations with clubs that want (to sign) Otamendi.

“It’s very important to know what the player wants to do, if a club doesn’t wish to pay the full release clause. Nicolas loves everything at Valencia but if the chance arose to leave, he’d do everything possible to make it happen.”

Otamendi has arguably been one of the best defenders in Spain last season and if United are to lure the 27-year old away from Mestalla, they will reportedly have to splash a sizeable £37million.